"I'm asking you, when Li Shuren got into trouble in the cold palace, was it because you wanted to rescue her that you poisoned the broken silver and secretly placed it in the bedroom of Concubine Shu and Zhou Bihe, with the sole purpose of rescuing Li Shuren? Not only that, you were able to completely get rid of Concubine Shu. As for Zhou Bihe, she was your scapegoat, wasn't she?"
Zhou Beichen's tone was so gentle that when Zhou Zeyu answered, he didn't think much and nodded directly.
"Yes, I want to go back to my mother. I miss him, especially when I see my brother and Concubine Shu getting close, I get angry."
Zhou Zeyu was swinging his feet leisurely as he spoke, completely unaware of Zhou Beichen's quietly changing expression and everyone else's trembling fear.
To put it in a broader sense, this is already a crime of deceiving the emperor.
"Dad, Yu'er is still young, please be lenient with him."
Zhou Zhaonuan rushed out immediately and ran in front of Zhou Beichen. With just one sentence, Zhou Zeyu was knocked out of his tenderness. Seeing Zhou Beichen's ashen face and thinking about what he had just said, Zhou Zeyu regretted it so much that he wanted to slap himself on the spot.
Oh my God, why did he just say everything?
Zhou Beichen didn't say anything and looked at him coldly. Zhou Zeyu didn't care about anything else. He fell down and knelt at his feet. He timidly pulled his trouser legs. At this moment, he was so scared that he didn't dare to cry.
"Father...Father, this is my fault. Please punish me."
He lowered his head deeply to the ground. Things were different now. He didn't know if Zhou Beichen still had any mercy on him after he had deceived him.
"Admit your mistake? Zhou Zeyu, when you did this just for that concubine in the cold palace, did you ever think about the consequences of your blatant deception of me and your calculation of my feelings for you?"
His chest kept rising and falling, which showed that he was really angry. He slammed the table and stood up, looking seriously at Zhou Zeyu who was kneeling on the ground.
"Tell me, what is the punishment for deceiving the emperor?"
At this moment, Zhou Zeyu was really scared. The previous few times Zhou Beichen was with him, it was all thunder and no action. But this time, he really deceived him. He leaned back, sat down on the ground, and muttered something in a panic.
"The crime of deceiving the emperor is to behead... and displayed to the public."
After saying that, Zhou Zeyu hugged himself tightly, and his whole body couldn't help but tremble.
"Mother, am I going to leave before you?"
Seeing his distraught look, Zhou Beichen's expression softened a bit, but he was still cold. "Come here, take the Second Prince to jail. Behead him in public at noon tomorrow."
Today, he must teach him a lesson so that he will never dare to deceive him again.
After saying that, Zhou Beichen frantically winked at Zhou Zhaonuan beside him.
Zhou Zhaonuan: “…”
It seems you are quite good at dealing with people. You play the good cop and the bad cop at the same time.
Immediately, a guard came forward to pull Zhou Zeyu. At this moment, Zhou Zeyu no longer cared about hatred. Tears had already blurred his eyes. He was scared. When the guard put his hands on his shoulders and said, "Second Prince, come with me," he trembled, turned around and hugged Zhou Beichen's thighs, crying miserably.
"Father...Father, I am your biological son. Please, please don't behead me. I will definitely change my ways and never lie again. I beg you, please..."
Zhou Zeyu was crying loudly, and Zhou Zeen nestled in Concubine Shu's arms, watching him calmly. During this period, he had seen his mother's flattery and care for his brother, his brother's indifference and resistance to him, as well as his brother's disgust for him, so there was no big ripple in his heart.
However, if he was really going to be dragged away in a while, he would reluctantly ask for mercy.
Concubine Shu was a little anxious. Although she didn't like Zhou Zeyu, she didn't want him to die.
"Your Majesty, Yu'er is just a child, still young and not very sensible. Your Majesty, why don't you change the punishment."
Shen Nian'an walked a few steps to Zhou Beichen and tried to persuade him.
"Your Majesty, Yu'er is still young, just a child. Please be merciful and do good for Yu'er's younger brothers and sisters."
Nuannuan pushed his shoulder at the right moment and said coquettishly, "Daddy, look at how many people are begging for Yu'er, please forgive him this time. Everyone makes mistakes when they are young."
The moment Zhou Zeyu hugged Zhou Beichen's thigh, the guards stepped aside, stopped talking, and just watched silently.
After a long time, Zhou Beichen waved his hand. After the guards left, Zhou Zeyu suddenly breathed a sigh of relief.
He knelt down and kowtowed, tears streaming down his face. "Thank you, father, for your grace."
Looking at the tears streaming down his little face, Zhou Beichen felt a flash of heartache in his eyes, but it disappeared in an instant.
With a tense expression, thinking that he had to teach him a lesson, Zhou Beichen was timid in front of him.
"Zhou Zeyu, I spared you today, not because of you, but because of those who pleaded for you. While the death penalty may be spared, the punishment of life cannot be avoided. Come, drag the Second Prince away, give him fifteen strokes of the cane, and confine him to his room for six months."
Zhou Zeyu fell to the ground again, his eyes full of panic. This time, he did not beg for mercy. He knew that if Zhou Beichen was really determined to punish him, no one's plea would be of any use.
He was very frightened, but he still thanked the master politely.
After fifteen strokes of the stick, Zhou Zeyu's whole body was convulsing and shaking, his body was wet, and his face was pale.
Zhou Zeyu ordered someone to call the imperial physician, and then he heard Zhou Beichen's voice coming.
"Shufei, you should take this person back. Concubine Hui is pregnant, and Nuannuan is a homeless person. I don't know when she ran away. I'll leave her with you. You can discipline her well for me. I'll feel more at ease."
Even though she was reluctant, Concubine Shu still squatted down and agreed.
He ordered someone to carry Zhou Zeyu back.
That night.
Zhou Zhaonuan changed into a white crescent-shaped robe and took Bilan with her. The two of them entered the most famous brothel in the capital, Zuihonglou, with great fanfare.
Zhou Zhaonuan held a folding fan in his hand, looking like a handsome young man.
The madam had a big red flower stuck on the side of her head. She twisted her body and walked over, looking at Zhou Beichen. She looked at him carefully for a while, and suddenly looked embarrassed.
"Sir, may I ask how old you are? If you are too young, we cannot entertain you in Zuihonglou. According to the laws of this dynasty, no man under the age of fifteen is allowed to enter Zuihonglou. Anyone who enters, Zuihonglou will not stop him. At the very least, he will have to pay a hundred taels of silver to the court, and at the worst, he will be beaten to death."
The madam's expression remained unchanged, but she was starting to have second thoughts. Seeing that the two little guys were only a little tall, they looked like they were less than fifteen years old. Even if they were dressed luxuriously, they couldn't make such a lot of money.
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